Well looks like from the reviews that I received that the last chapter wasn't as bad as I was thinking it might have been, and of course thanks as always to those that did review. But this one I'm a little more confident in at least. It's probably the second largest chapter that I've done but that was mostly so that I wouldn't split the chapter in the middle of the battle. So as everyone has been waiting for, here's Ash's double battle. Welcome to chapter 25.

"Okay, do you have any idea as to why he wanted to buy these for us?"

"No clue."

Having just parted from Ash as he entered the trainer prep room, May and Dawn were looking down at the items that he had bought for them at the general store before they made their way back to the stadium, ear plugs.

"Well, Ash told us to wear them so there has to be some reason behind it," May finally said. "He even made sure to get some for Eevee and Piplup. So I for one am going to put them in."

"I see no reason why not to either. He knows something about what he planned to do for this battle and he wants our ears protected, so I'm not going to go against it either."

Putting the ear plugs into their pockets for the time being, the two girls and their Pokémon began to walk down the hall to find their seats.

"I knew if I waited here I could catch you two."

Turning around, they found Drew leaning up against one of the walls.

"You two would accompany Ketchum to the prep room and then leave from there, so needless to say it made the most sense to do just that."

"Why does he have to be here?" Dawn whispered to May as the boy started to walk closer.

"Oh yeah, in my excitement I forgot to mention that he said he would be joining us to watch Ash's match," May whispered back, a bit of nervous laughter escaping her lips as well.

"Great."

"So should we go find some open seats?"

"Sure Drew," Dawn said back to him in her normal tone of voice with a light smile, completely hiding the fact that she didn't want him to be there. If Ash wasn't nearby there was no point in having him be with them, and she had no real liking for the boy anyways.

Walking into the stands, even if they were rather full it didn't take too long to find three open seats, sitting down with May and Eevee in between the other two. The match currently going on was almost over with both trainers down one Pokémon, a Charizard and an Onix as the remaining two.

"So Dawn, seeing as how you're a coordinator too, why didn't you enter the competition?" Drew asked as he tried to get some conversation going. "Or did you lose in the first round."

"Ash, May, and I got separated while coming here so I missed the deadline to enter," she told him, once again trying to hide her annoyance. "Don't worry; I would have made it to the top 50 without too much problem."

"Considering Ketchum made it there it must not have been all that hard."

"You keep talking like you know what he's like Drew; I would bet that you have no clue about him," the blunette stated confidently.

"I know enough. Of which is that his battle style is a bad influence on May."

"Please, don't even start to compare your style with his. You'll lose every time."

"Okay, no more please," May interrupted the small fight as she saw Drew start to go faintly red in the face. "I don't like it when people argue with each other from both sides of me."

"Fine by me May." Calming down with a flick of his hair, Drew looked back down to the field where the current trainers were just leaving. "I'm only here to see how Ketchum actually does considering this is supposed to be his specialty."

Before either Dawn or May could say anything in response, the loudspeaker started up announcing the next battle.

"For our next battle for the second round we present to you our next two trainers, Aaron Ryan and Ash Ketchum. By random selection Mr. Ryan is the one who chooses first."

At the sound of Ash's name, soft murmurs began to ripple across the stadium. The teens could hear a few in their own section.

"Ash Ketchum, doesn't that name sound familiar?"

"Isn't that the name of the new Lilly of the Valley Conference champion?"

"No it can't be. What would someone like that be doing here?"

"I wonder if they are related."

"Yeah, maybe we could find him after this to see if we couldn't get him to get an autograph for us. Because I doubt he'll get any further than this so he'll have some free time on his hands."

"Well with Aaron as his opponent I doubt that a no-name coordinator can go up against the runner-up in this year's Kanto Grand Festival."

"They are in for a shock if they underestimate what Ash can do," May thought as she heard several of them. "He has this round won with almost no problem."

Ash was feeling a little odd standing there in front of all these people in his new clothes. By that point he was used to them around May and Dawn or out in the general public, but with everyone focused on him it was a different feeling. And even though he couldn't make out what they were saying, he could guess as to what the whispering was about when the mentioned his name over the loudspeaker.

"And here I was hoping that they wouldn't recognize my name that much this far away from Sinnoh, Pikachu," he said to his partner. "Guess that was inevitable."

Looking over at his opponent, he was a boy probably two or three years younger than Ash with short brown hair.

"I just wonder if he's heard of me. By the look on his face I doubt it."

"Pikachu."

"That just means that we can have a bit more fun beforehand." Taking a quick glance at the sun's position, a smile came to his face. "And that's virtually perfect for us as well. This should go pretty close to how we have it planned. Now all that's left are the two Pokémon that he picks."

Hearing the tone signaling for the trainers to send out their Pokémon, Ash's opponent tossed his two into the air revealing two Pokémon that Ash knew rather well considering that they were both natives of Kanto. The first was a small brown bipedal dinosaur-like Pokémon only a little over half the height of Ash, with a skull acting as a helmet and a large bone it was wielding as a club. The other was rather surprising to Ash, in a good way, because he knew Pidgeot would recognize that Pokémon instantly. It was a bird Pokémon native to the area like it was, but had a much longer and slender neck and beak. And while its body was smaller than Pidgeot's its wingspan was slightly larger.

"Oh Pidgeot is going to love taking on this trainer for his first battle with me in so long," Ash grinned. "You ready Buddy?"

"Pika."

"Go Pidgeot!"

Tossing the ball into the air, the large bird came out and landed right next to where Pikachu had taken up a position on their side of the field. Like Ash had thought, as soon as Pidgeot saw one of his opponents his glare never left the bird. Sure, he knew it wasn't the same Fearow that he dueled with for so long, but ever since then he had a certain dislike for the other Flying-Type. Not to mention he knew their attacks inside and out.

"Our green trainer has chosen a Marowak and Fearow while the red trainer has chosen a Pikachu and Pidgeot," the announcer said over the loudspeaker as the crowd's conversations started to die down.

"Just to let you know," Ash called out to the other boy. "My Pidgeot has a bit of a bad history with Fearow; you might want to be careful."

"Thanks but you should worry more about your own Pokémon," Aaron called back. "Your Pikachu isn't going to be enough and I have a reputation that I need to keep up as the runner-up in this year's Grand Festival."

"We'll see, because I have a bit of a reputation to uphold as well."

As soon as the buzzer went off for the start of the match, Ash was ready with his attacks.

"Okay guys just like we practiced. Pidgeot, Tailwind and take to the air! Pikachu Quick Attack!"

With a quick gust of wind aimed at their opponents, the Flying-Type took to the air shooting straight up. Pikachu wasn't far behind as his accelerated Quick Attack sped him right at Marowak.

"Fearow you take to the skies too, Marowak show that Pikachu why an Electric-Type should respect a Ground-Type!"

"Pikachu, Iron Tail!"

Spinning around with the speed of the Quick Attack behind him, Pikachu revealed his basic close range attack aimed right at the Marowak who was completely unprepared for the speed at which he closed the distance between the two.

"Marowak defend!"

Hastily holding up his bone club in front of himself, the Bone Keeper Pokémon took the full force of the amplified Iron Tail. Grunting at the unexpected power behind the attack he found himself skidding back nearly a meter before finding his footing again.

"Keep the pressure Pikachu! Now both of you use Agility!"

Not slowing down for even a moment, the Mouse Pokémon once again closed the distance between them in an instant, swinging his tail right back at his opponent. This time though Marowak wisely chose to dodge instead, but before he could even throw a counter attack the lithe Electric-Type was once again spinning back around with another attack. Marowak could only continue dodging for fear of what might happen if on one of those attacks hit home.

It took a second for Aaron to realize what was going on. He had never seen an Electric-Type, let alone a tiny Pikachu, get that up close and personal to a Ground-Type before.

"Marowak Bone Club! Fearow Whirlwind! Fill the entire area!"

Finally finding an opening to start his own barrage, Marowak's club became a blur as he swung it from nearly every angle he could. Problem was, being a mouse Pikachu's agility wasn't just limited to attack. Jumping left, right, up, and down; Pikachu never even came close to being touched by the attack. He was even able to get an Iron Tail in here and there when he found his own opening.

Up in the air, noticing that the Pidgeot was keeping its distance for the time being, Fearow began to blow up a large Whirlwind to hamper their opponents, knowing that Marowak's weight would keep it relatively safe from the attack. The two had teamed up many times before and this was just going to be another easy win for them, no matter how agile that Pikachu was. Flapping its wings rapidly back and forth the wind started to pick up and soon the small breeze turned into a strong current of air that was beginning to slow down the lighter Pikachu from moving as he liked.

Ash could feel the attack quite easily as it blew back and caused his top shirt to flap behind him, but he still had a large smile on his face.

"Pikachu catch the gust back to our side! Pidgeot, let's show them a real windstorm, Hurricane!"

Currently positioned with his opponent between him and Ash, Pikachu did a quick dodge of another Bone Club and skidded underneath the Pokémon's legs. Jumping up just enough to catch the wind Fearow was making along with a Quick Attack caused Pikachu to fly back near Ash and land while doing a 180 in the dirt to face his opponent again, already preparing for what was coming next.

For Pidgeot the wind the other bird was producing was nearly negligible, the other Fearow's Whirlwind was much more powerful than this. Taking up the most ideal position he began to flap his wings just like his opponent, as he did the wind started to idle as it felt as though it was dying down. As Pidgeot continued to speed up his own attack the two powerful winds rammed into each other in the center of the field, and just as Pikachu made his way past the point, a small tornado started to form from the clashing currents. Yet it would never touch down. Before long Pidgeot took the upper hand as his wings beat even faster and the torrent of air that Fearow had created was nearly forgotten as Pidgeot returned the force with extra, and it just kept going faster. Loose items from the crowd could be seen flying up along the force of the hurricane force winds as many of the spectators held onto their seats as they felt like they would fly up too if they let go. As the winds hit their max speed a creaking noise followed by the sharp crack of electricity could be heard over the roaring windstorm as several of the light posts on the upper part of the stadium began to bend back from the force, white-hot sparks flying backwards along with torrent of air.

Seeing as how the Pidgeot was keeping his distance Fearow wasn't too worried about him at first, thinking that it was only there to back up the Electric-Type. With the sudden gust now coming back at him even with his Whirlwind in effect Fearow was having a hard time staying airborne and just to keep from flying back he had to stop his own attack and focus only on resisting is opponent. On the ground, Marowak was experiencing a similar effect as it had to jab his bone hard into the earth to help hold on. He was used to his partner's Whirlwind but this was on another level entirely.

"This is nuts!" Aaron cried out over the thunderous winds. "Fearow, Marowak, Hyper Beam! Stop that bird!"

Barely able to aim their attacks at the bird, the two Pokémon fired off a thick yellow beam of energy from their mouths at their target. Before Marowak could even complete the attack he caught a glimpse of a yellow blur right before he felt a very sharp pain in his stomach.

Using the same maneuver that got him out of combat, Pikachu once again used a Quick Attack combined with Pidgeot's Hurricane to rocket back into close range from the exact opposite side of the field, Iron Tail at the ready. With Marowak's attention elsewhere it was child's play to get a direct hit, striking the Ground-Type in the stomach and onto his back causing the Hyper Beam to go flying out of control across the sky. Luckily for both trainers, it hit absolutely nothing before it faded out.

"Pidgeot, Quick Attack!"

Pulling his wings in, the Pokémon dropped down about a meter from Fearow's attack before righting himself and the form of the large bird blurred as it sped towards its target as well.

"Dodge!"

With Fearow still recharging from the Hyper Beam, dodging the attack was virtually impossible and it hit dead on as Pidgeot continued past and quickly gained altitude.

"That's it; we need to take them down one at a time!" Aaron concluded as his points took a large drop. "Marowak Bone Club that Pikachu! Fearow Twister on Pikachu as well! Keep a watch for the Pidgeot!"

Caught up again in the game of whack-a-mole, Pikachu proved how fast he was even without Quick Attack. And even with the slightly larger Twister, he was just too fast and experienced for them to hit him. Of course if they did hit it could be game over for him, but he preferred not to think of that. It was more fun just dodging these attacks and watching the frustration on his opponents' faces.

"Pidgeot, Brave Bird! Prepare to catch!"

Already at a significantly high altitude and nearly out of view, his sensitive hearing picked up his trainer's command with ease. Entering into an aerial flip, the great bird positioned himself into a power dive right at his target by pulling his wings and feet up against his body and allowing gravity to do the rest, picking up speed after every passing second.

"It's coming back!" Aaron yelled as he made out the form of the other bird, now covered in a blue flame, come shooting back down to the stadium. "Fearow dodge it and give it a Twister! Marowak Earthquake! We need to beat that Pikachu!"

"Perfect," Ash said to himself as he watched the entire battle open up in front of him. "Pikachu get ready for round two!"

Grasping his bone club with both hands and raising it high above his head, Marowak was preparing to employ one of the strongest Ground-Type attacks. But Pikachu once again slid between his legs onto the other side as he hit the ground causing the stadium to quake and the ground to split open in small areas, escaping the worst of the attack. Turning around, the Bone Keeper Pokémon caught just enough to see Pikachu jump into the air before the shockwave hit him while contorting himself in midair to face his opponent once more. Grinning, the Electric-Type's eyes glowed yellow for a moment before the entire world became white.

"Great job you two!" Ash congratulated his Pokémon. "Now to start the real battle."

The Flash attack caught Aaron completely off guard. His opponent never even ordered it. As his vision started to return, the coordinator could see no real sign of Pikachu, only the retreating tail feathers of Pidgeot as he gained altitude yet again. Checking his two Pokémon, they both seemed perfectly fine. So at least that meant his Fearow dodged that Brave Bird attack. He could see no hole or any indication of where Pikachu went, but with Pidgeot starting to turn around he knew that he had other problems. Unable to risk another Hyper Beam if Pikachu came out of hiding he had to use another tactic. And with the speed of the other Flying-Type, he wasn't sure how long Fearow would last against it in a one on one fight with that Pidgeot. Something the over-confident Flying-Type was already realizing.

"Fearow, Marowak, line yourselves up with Pidgeot as he comes down and prepare for a defense!"

"Bring it down just like we practiced!" Ash called out as Pidgeot got further into the air.

Doing as their trainer ordered, the two Pokémon kept in line while watching Pidgeot circle the sky until he reached the noon sun. Losing sight of them, Aaron couldn't make out his opponent's form until it was coming down in another Quick Attack using the sun behind them as a blinder.

"Fearow use your Keen Eye to dodge that bird then Twister it, Marowak Bonemerang once Fearow moves! Get it into a pincher!"

Shooting down once again, Fearow easily dodged the other bird with one strong beat of his wings and prepared its attack just as Marowak pulled his bone back, ready to throw it.

"Pikachu, Thunderbolt! Pidgeot, Air Slash!" Ash called out as his two opponents were about to launch their attacks.

Dropping down from his angle slightly to get out of the way of the sun's light, Pidgeot's wings began to glow a light blue as he neared his target. Of course with the large bird's body no longer blocking the sun Marowak flinched momentarily as the bright sunlight hit his eyes. But that moment was all Pidgeot needed.

Spreading his wings at the last second, the Flying-Type fired off several circles of sickle-like energy as he took back up into the air. Caught off guard again by the attack, the Ground-Type could only hold his bone in front of him to block one of them as two more hit down right next to him, creating gashes in the earth several inches deep as they cartwheeled by.

Keeping his eye on Pidgeot as the bird launched his own attack and retreated, Fearow thought that he was in a perfect position to make the counter attack. But just as he was about to use his wings to start it, the bird heard a crackling noise behind him. Turning his head to the new noise, he found the Pikachu; free falling and electricity flaring going straight for the Flying-Type. Unable to defend in time, Pikachu rammed into his target and unleashed his electricity for the first time in the battle, causing the Pokémon to cry out in pain. Temporarily losing control of his muscles from the attack, Fearow rolled to one side before catching himself only moments later. While there was no doubt the attack did severe damage, at least the mouse wasn't able to hold onto him.

Recovering from his own assault, Marowak noticed the midair Pikachu and decided to take action on his own, pulling back and throwing his Bonemerang at the seemingly helpless Electric-Type.

"No, Fearow dodge that Pidgeot!"

Almost missing the attack, Aaron knew that he was focusing too much on that Pikachu. After the Air Slash attack, Pidgeot flew back up into the air before aiming back in only moments later with yet another Quick Attack.

Recovering from the powerful shock, Fearow looked up just in time to see Pidgeot charging back into the fight, talons outstretched to their max and aimed right at the other Flying-Type. With a quick flap of his large wings, Fearow barely dodged the attack just in time to see that he wasn't the true target. Shooting past him, Pidgeot got underneath Pikachu just in time to catch him and avoid the Bonemerang before bringing them both back into the air.

"So that's his strategy." Looking back at Ash, Aaron was starting to get frustrated. Not at what the other trainer was doing, but more at who he could be. He was in the Kanto Grand Festival and didn't see anyone of this level there, nor in the Johto Grand Festival that he watched on TV. Taking a glance at the scoreboard he was technically in the lead, barely, but any amateur could see that the battle itself was completely in his opponent's favor. "Fearow get ready for his Pikachu the next time they come around! Marowak get out of line with Fearow, they'll just use the sun as a blinder again. Going up against them two on one in their favor would be an instant loss so we need to stay back here."

As the coordinator predicted, Pidgeot once again became lost in the bright rays of the midday sun.

"Just watch the bird," Aaron told himself. "Just watch the bird. Pikachu will be right behind him to attack Fearow and Pidgeot will come down to attack Marowak. Then Pidgeot needs to grab Pikachu so there is probably a second attack when he comes back in."

"Alright guys let's move on," Ash called out to his Pokémon. "Pidgeot, Wing Attack! Pikachu Iron Tail!"

"Fearow your target is Pikachu as he goes past, hit it with a Drill Peck. Marowak get ready with a Bonemerang at Pidgeot!"

Watching as closely as he could with the sun as it was, Aaron observed his opponent's Flying-Type get closer and closer.

"Now Fearow, dodge the bird and hit the Pikachu behind it! Marowak, Bonemerang!"

Once again dodging with a strong flap from his wings, Fearow looked past the other bird to find the target for his attack. While he did find him, the Electric-Type was nowhere near them. Pikachu was once again in free fall, but this time headed for Marowak. Realizing what was going on a second to late, Fearow glanced over at the other Flying-Type just in time to be struck with a powerful hit from its wing as it flew past.

From Pikachu's perspective, Pikapi's plan was working perfectly. They were catching their opponents off guard at every turn, but he had work to do. If he wasn't careful this one could hurt greatly. After Pidgeot started flying off, it was then Marowak noticed him, but it too was just a moment too late. Charging up a Thunderbolt, Pikachu shot it all around the Ground-Type right before he hit the earth, causing a blast of dust to rise up around them.

"That electric attack is not going to do anything to…" Aaron stopped midsentence as Marowak went flying from the newly created dust cloud and crashed into the side wall. Before long the dust cleared, revealing a dirty, but unharmed, Pikachu at its center with his tail still glowing a dull metal grey.

"He wasn't trying to attack Marowak," he realized. "Not only did it cover his final approach but the blast cushioned Pikachu's fall, making Pidgeot catching him unnecessary. Damn, who is this guy? Fearow use Drill Run on Pikachu before Pidgeot gets back!"

Still a little woozy from the bludgeoning strike, Fearow found his target again, this time on the ground. Worried about the fact that Pidgeot wouldn't be far behind, the Flying-Type had to trust his trainer. Pulling his entire body into a rapid spin, the Beak Pokémon dove down towards Pikachu.

"Pikachu dodge!"

As the large bird came down on him, Pikachu just barely dodged the full brunt of the attack with it skimming across a minor portion of his side. Normally he would have had no problem dodging something like that, but while he didn't have any injuries from the impact it still put a good deal of strain on his body temporarily. Wincing in pain as the bird flew past, Pikachu knew he messed up, even if there was little he could do to stop it at the time.

"Marowak get up!" Aaron called out to his Pokémon. "I know that must hurt but will you really let an Electric-Type beat you?"

Slowly getting back to his feet, Marowak had to use his club as a cane to steady himself but he was still in this fight. He couldn't let a lowly Pikachu beat him, even if he now knew that his opponent was very experienced and was in no way a push-over.

"Pidgeot, come pick up Pikachu," Ash called out to his Flying-Type as he circled the air above them. "We're bringing this up a notch."

"With Pikachu hit by that last attack we don't have much of a choice," Ash thought. "These guys aren't all that great but their attacks will really hurt if they hit."

"Fearow continue your Drill Run up towards Pidgeot! Marowak, use Bonemerang to support him! We need to keep them from joining up again!"

"Pikachu use Thunderbolt on Fearow!"

Unable to keep his focus on the Pidgeot coming down from the skies, Fearow had no choice but to stop his spin to dodge the Electric-Type attack. He felt the first one, and he knew if he got hit by that again in his current condition he would be out. As for the Bonemerang, to Pidgeot it might as well have not even been moving at all, he dodged it without a problem and with Pikachu jumping back onto his back started to pull back up into the air.

"Okay guys, let's try this," the trainer calmly told them. "Thunder Armor!"

"Fearow watch out!" Aaron warned his Pokémon. "That doesn't sound good."

On his way back up into the air, Pikachu started to concentrate to be able to create his next attack. Launching a powerful bolt of lightning up into the air at one of the small clouds, the attack stalled as it pulsated around for a moment. It didn't take long for the attack to come back down with several times the original force, right down onto Pikachu and Pidgeot as not just one but a total of three separate bolts of lightning fell from the sky onto the pair.

"What the…is he insane?"

Aaron could only watch as the Thunder attack hit his opponent's Pokémon, an attack far greater than what had been used on either of his own Pokémon so far. Both seemed to be struggling with the electricity, but after many seconds everything seemed to stabilize. Now covered in a golden glowing aura and their bodies shining the same color, Pidgeot hovered there with Pikachu on his back, both looking as confident as ever.

"Now guys," Ash commanded. "Time for another assault. Brave Bird and Thunderbolt, focus on Fearow!"

With a loud call, Pidgeot took off high into the sky again, his speed noticeably faster.

"I have no clue what's going on but I don't like the looks of this," Aaron said to himself. "Marowak just prepare another Bonemerang, Fearow get ready for anything! Dodge as early as you can to avoid everything!"

Traveling up into the air, Pidgeot could feel the pain of the electricity running through his body, even if Pikachu was trying to control it as much as possible. But even if this was a double-edged sword type of attack, the aura reduced wind resistance allowing for faster speeds and the new power was also a welcome advantage.

Starting back into their rotation, Pidgeot started to dive down to the ground with Pikachu letting go at about the midpoint allowing the Flying-Type to speed up and hit first with him coming in behind.

"Fearow dodge that!"

Moving as fast as wings could take him; Fearow narrowly dodged Pidgeot's Brave Bird and was just as close when it came to the falling Pikachu right after with an electrified Iron Tail clipping the edges of his feathers. Guessing as to where the next attack would come from, he was once again barely able to move out of the way of the attack from behind. But as before the miss meant nothing to Ash as Pidgeot was able to get back into position to grab Pikachu before he hit the ground. After they were back up in the air the attack started over again.

But unlike the earlier attacks Pikachu never left Pidgeot's back for too long. Unlike with Swellow, who was able to retain the electricity better for some reason, Pikachu had to continually recharge the Thunder Armor on Pidgeot and because of this he wasn't able to go down and deal with Marowak without risking the loss of the attack. If the armor was lost he would only have to hit his partner with another Thunder attack. While the effects were minimal to the Electric-Type, Pidgeot could only take so much. So they needed to stick together, and with Fearow in the air it was only natural for them to target him.

Although he was able to dodge them, Fearow's stress was increasing far beyond what he was used to with each attack. He was tiring fast and if even one of those attacks hit he would be out for sure. It was even to the point where he was starting to ignore some of his trainer's orders to attack. With the speed boost his opponent got from that weird armor, it took all his concentration just to keep one of those Quick Attacks from hitting, let alone make sure that the Pikachu didn't come in to deliver a finishing blow right after.

Essentially being ignored with the exception of an Air Slash every so often, the Ground-Type was getting annoyed. It was almost as if he didn't even matter in their eyes anymore. That annoyance was only accentuated by the fact that he only knew two ranged attacks, and one of them his trainer wasn't willing to take the risk of the recharge time to create an opening. Even if Marowak was throwing his bone every time they came within range, it was far too slow for the aerial battle and only accomplished two things. Slightly limiting the angle that the two could fall and slowly reducing Aaron's points.

The coordinator was getting about as annoyed as his Pokémon were at that point. Fearow was ignoring his commands for counterattacks and Marowak was essentially useless at that point. To make matters worse, he couldn't depend on his ace in the hole, Hyper Beam, or risk a finishing attack if they missed. Aaron couldn't believe the power just a single attack from either of those Pokémon held and he was beginning to doubt if the boy across from him was even a coordinator. The only thing he could hope for was that in dodging his opponent's attacks he could get enough of a lead to win in the end.

Sure enough, with Pidgeot not hitting with his attacks on Fearow and Pikachu only getting stray arcs of his own attack, Ash's points were dropping as well. And while it wasn't by much, they were dropping faster than Aaron's. While some of the Air Slash attacks that the Flying-Type launched at Marowak hit their target enough to keep the points rather even, it still wasn't enough. While Ash currently had a slight lead, the timer was down to the three minute mark and this repetition was getting them nowhere.

"I was hoping that Fearow would have slowed down more that this by now," Ash muttered to himself. "In a normal battle I could keep this up and probably win eventually, as long as Pidgeot was able to keep going, but I don't have that luxury now. Problem being I don't want to use our new attack just yet. Let's see if a simple combo will be enough, then we can start to see the difference between trainers and coordinators." Turning back to his two Pokémon, the trainer was confident that this should be enough. If he didn't have to risk using it he didn't want to use his ace. "Pikachu, Pidgeot, move onto combo four. If we can end this now, all the better!"

Hearing their trainer's order, the Flying-Type brought himself back into position to create his lines that he had been using for the past several minutes. He could see their opposing trainer looking somewhat worried at the new orders but just by watching their initial movements he wouldn't be able to figure out what they were planning.

"I'm not sure what this combo of theirs is but get ready Fearow," Aaron told his Pokémon. "You too Marowak, but just keep an eye on them. Ever since they created that odd armor the Pikachu doesn't stay off of Pidgeot for long."

Finding his opponent going back into the sun's rays to use as a blinder was nothing new; the coordinator knew that it would probably be essentially the same. As long as Fearow could keep an eye on the two he wasn't in an excessive amount of danger.

Shooting back down, Pidgeot was aimed for his counterpart, and even though the other bird dodged it without too much effort, he wasn't putting too much effort into making it hit either. This time he was only playing two roles, transport and blocker.

Flying out of the way of the simple Wing Attack, Fearow was wondering why it seemed too easy to dodge. He got his answer as Pidgeot passed him. Unlike the majority of the times before, Pikachu was nowhere to be seen. Scanning the skies the Flying-Type could find no clue of him, but with the mouse starting on Pidgeot's back that meant there was only one other place for him to be.

"Pikachu, Thunderbolt!"

Jumping off of Pidgeot as he leveled off closer to the stadium's floor, Pikachu let out a large amount of electricity which arced out across the entire field causing dust to fly up and obscure the lower couple meters of the field.

"Not this again," Aaron muttered. He was hoping that he had figured out the weakness of that armor but now that Pikachu was on the ground the options opened up too much for his liking. While he still held an advantage in one sense, the earlier clashes showed how little that meant against this particular opponent. "Fearow quickly blow that dust away with Gust! We can't allow that Pikachu to move as it pleases in there! Marowak get ready for anything now that it's down on the ground again!"

"Pidgeot you use Gust too! Try and cancel it out!"

Even if Hurricane was a more powerful attack, Ash knew that in this case a regular Gust was better. He needed it fast and just enough to counteract the other attack. Besides, Pikachu was going to be the one that would be the focus of this so if he could keep Fearow busy it was only a plus.

Positioning himself so he could do as his trainer commanded, Pidgeot started his attack just moments after the Fearow did. Much like when the battle started the two attacks collided in the middle of the field as they pulled the dust along with them and up into a small tornado created by the conflicting currents.

With the field now clear, Marowak could clearly see the Pikachu who landed somewhat hard on the ground on the opposite side of the field. At least with his initial landing it allowed enough time to recover so that by the time the dust was cleared he was already heading for his opponent while Pidgeot kept the Fearow busy.

"Okay Pikachu, Sweep!"

Even if Pikachu knew what he needed to do for this combo Ash needed the first attack to be obvious enough to counter, and if they were bad enough to not dodge it the effects would be worthwhile anyways.

It didn't take long until the Electric-Type was right next to Marowak and as per his orders pulled himself into a spin and swept his tail just above the ground, aiming for his opponent's legs with another powerful Iron Tail attack.

"Jump!"

He may not have completely understood the order, but after seeing how it started it wasn't hard to know the meaning. Aaron felt lucky enough that he was able to figure it out fast enough and call the counter because if that one hit, Marowak would have a hard time moving from any following attack, though at that range his options for dodging it were rather slim. Problem was that was exactly what Ash was hoping that they'd do.

As the Ground-Type jumped up to avoid the first attack, Pikachu continued his spinning motion back around and with his Iron Tail still glowing pulled it into an uppercut motion. Unable to react fast enough and caught while in mid jump, Marowak could only try to angle his head in a hope that the Pikachu would miss. Unfortunately for him it wasn't enough.

Coming right up though his jaw, even the protective skull he was wearing wasn't enough to block the entire blow. Snapping his head back it stunned the Bone Keeper Pokémon and it couldn't even see the third blow as the mouse jumped up and with yet another Iron Tail struck him right in the gut sending him flying backwards from the force. At least with Pikachu being in midair as well the force wasn't as powerful as it could have been, but having used this combo before Ash knew how to give it a bit more of a punch.

"Pikachu, Thunderbolt!"

Before he even was back on the ground, the Electric-Type launched his electricity right as his target.

If it wasn't for the rest of the moves that his opponent was pulling off, normally an attack of that type wouldn't mean anything to Aaron against his Marowak. Problem being was he had already learned not to take anything Ash did for face value. Sure enough as the bolt hit, it didn't appear to do anything to the Ground-Type. It was the force of the attack that Ash was wanting, and the blast of electrons sent the Pokémon flying back into the perimeter wall at nearly twice the speed he started at. Dazed by the impact, Marowak could barely hear his trainer calling out for him to defend.

As soon he had all four paws back on the ground, on Ash's command Pikachu was already launching himself back at the defenseless opponent with Quick Attack, Iron Tail glowing yet again.

Barely coming to in time, Marowak brought his bone up to intercept the Steel-Type attack. Having felt the force of these attacks at the beginning of the round, he was unprepared for the force of this current one. Even through his growing exhaustion, the Thunder Armor nearly doubled the force of the Iron Tail. Straining the hold back the attack, the burst of adrenaline that came from the sound of his bone starting to fracture under the pressure was enough to give him the extra boost to throw Pikachu back off of himself.

Breathing a sigh of relief at the exchange, Aaron was really starting to get worried at what was going on. The tornado from the two Gust attacks was also dissipating as the action on the ground was dying down, but he knew he didn't have time to relax as Marowak got to his feet.

"Marowak use Stone Edge! We need to take out at least one of them if we're to win this!"

Summoning the strength to smash his weapon down to the ground, a stream of razor sharp rocks blew out of the ground heading for Pikachu. Surprisingly even with the wave widening as it radiated out, he didn't look nervous at all. After hearing a sharp whistle from Pikapi he knew there was nothing to worry about. Waiting until he heard the sound of wings behind him, Pikachu jumped into the air just as Pidgeot came flying down and picked him up. But going back up into the air wasn't what Ash was hoping for.

"Reinforce the armor and charge through with Brave Bird!" He called out just as his two Pokémon joined up again. "Pikachu cover him as best you can by blasting the rocks with Thunderbolt!"

Nearly grinning as he realized what was going to happen, Aaron was quick to take advantage of his new opportunity.

"Let's take out that Pidgeot, Fearow use Swift and Marowak another Stone Edge!"

With another wave of rocks shooting up with a shower of stars streaming down from the sky, Ash's two Pokémon really had to rely on not only each other but their trainer's decision as well. Of course both were fiercely loyal to the boy and even if they had been apart for so long their teamwork wasn't broken that easily.

Even if he ordered the attack in preparation for what Ash ordered, Aaron was expecting them to bank off to avoid the attacks. Besides the fact that they would be going head on into three powerful attacks, the space between Marowak and the wall would give them no room to pull up before they hit the wall themselves. Even if he was getting surprised by virtually every move the other boy was doing, that seemed a bit too much.

Too bad he underestimated the Pokémon's devotion and trust in their trainer. Flying right into the first wave of Stone Edge, Pidgeot covered himself in the familiar blue flame of Brave Bird while Pikachu not only recharged the Thunder Armor, which nearly fell off in their time apart, but also blasted most of the rocks that would have made a direct hit on his partner. A few still got through but thanks to the Thunder Armor combined with the Brave Bird aura most of the force behind the attacks was taken out. But the first wave wasn't the real problem; the second wave of now two attacks was just about to hit them. Without even the slightest hesitation they continued forward, although this time there were too many targets for Pikachu to deal with and all he could do was silently apologize to the much larger Pidgeot as he took the brunt of what got through. At least he made sure to get most of the rocks which would have been far more painful for the Flying-Type and he even used his own body to try and keep some of the Swift attack off. The Electric-Type knew that Pikapi could still win the battle if he went down, but if Pidgeot went down their chances of winning would have fallen dramatically.

The fact that they went right through the barrage legitimately surprised Aaron because if they went through the trouble of pushing through that meant that they would continue on through to Marowak and into the wall, and if they did that it would only cause more problems for them than himself. He was only worried that there wasn't enough time for Marowak to defend against the assault.

"Hang in there Marowak!"

"Pikachu, Thunderbolt the ground!" Ash called out at the last second before they hit the Ground-Type.

Just as the Bird Pokémon hit his target, Pikachu let out a massive bolt of electricity into the ground around them. Even if the electrons danced around Marowak doing essentially nothing, Ash's idea worked as he thought. Hitting the ground, the powerful attack caused a sudden updraft of dust and heated air. With his large wings completely unfurled, the effect on Pidgeot was immediate as he caught the artificial thermal and raised enough above the wall with Marowak still clinging onto one of his wings from the initial attack.

Pulling away as the Ground-Type fell off, Pidgeot was flying next to blind as the backlash of pain from the Brave Bird attack hit home. But he was able to see well enough to aim for the Fearow who was hovering up above them.

"Dodge it Fearow!"

It didn't look like an attack so Fearow only pulled back slightly as the giant bird flew right past. But when the Flying-Type's vision was no longer blocked by his counterpart's body, it revealed a grinning Pikachu floating in midair.

"Another Thunderbolt Pikachu!" His trainer called out with a grin equal to that of his Pokémon.

"I swear am I going up against two Pokémon or one Pokémon with two bodies?" Aaron asked himself just as Pikachu came into his view and launched his attack. "I need to take out at least one of them if I have any chance at winning this."

"Fearow, hang in there and fire of a Razor Wind right at that Pikachu while it's completely defenseless!"

Pulling himself together even through the powerful attack, Fearow was just glad that the attack didn't come earlier otherwise he would have probably been out. As the electricity started to wear off he gave one blast of air from his large wings. Razor Wind was his favorite attack, and unlike most Pokémon that used it his was even more effective as it wasn't just a couple large blades but a nearly countless amount of tiny sickles hidden in the blast of air.

For Pikachu, his grin fell instantly as the first of the attack reached him. It seemed as though every part of his body was hit with paper-cut slices and he couldn't resist crying out from the pain. He didn't think that it would be enough to cause him to black out but the pain was incredible. Even if he knew it would be easier to recover from than it, the pain was comparable to the Poison Claw he received from the Drapion in the Lilly of the Valley Conference finals.

"Now Fearow while he can't move, Drill Peck!"

It was then that Pikachu was really starting to worry. Even if Marowak was still recovering and couldn't help, he had an angry bird that was about to deal a major attack that could very well take him out while he was still building up his electricity back up to usable levels. Even if Pikapi could probably see what was going on better than he could, the Electric-Type still couldn't hold it back, there was only one thing that could save him now.

"Pikachu!"

As the Fearow's beak started to spin rapidly a loud shriek could easily be heard from above him. Turing his attention away from the virtually helpless Pikachu, something that even made his blood freeze came into view. With a fierce glare that promised an equal amount of pain that he just inflicted, Pidgeot came screaming down in a full dive, talons just now outstretching and aiming for his prey. Unlike the last time this happened Fearow had no time to react, the other Flying-Type hit him like a ton of bricks and his deadly talons grabbed hold. They may have been similar in size when wingspan was concerned but Pidgeot was nearly half-again as heavy as the other bird, and combined with the power created from the dive caused them both to fall right down to the ground, completely under Pidgeot's control.

Smashing down into the earth, Pidgeot could feel an odd sensation as the electricity built up in him from the Thunder Armor was trying to ground itself, right through his opponent. With his opponent now helpless in his grasp he would have preferred to do more than that in retaliation for what it did to Pikachu, but there were other priorities. Releasing his grip, the Flying-Type was able to take off and meet up with his partner before the Electric-Type could fall too far and started to bring him back up to safety.

"That was too close," Ash muttered after what just happened. From his position he could see that Pidgeot was already on his way back down but it still made him tense up just watching it. Glancing at the clock he could see that it just passed the two minute mark. From the last few barrages he was actually losing in points. And the repeat attacks that he kept on doing probably weren't helping things either. Noticing Fearow actually getting up from that attack Pidgeot gave it, the trainer figured that it was best to try and end it all at once. "They're a tenacious duo, I'll give them that much, but with Thunder Armor starting to wear off we don't have much time left. Besides, I might as well finish it off with a good show for the audience." Turning back to his Pokémon, Ash gave his order. "Pidgeot, Pikachu, recharge the Thunder Armor and straight into Mach Meteor! We're finishing this now!"

"Mach Meteor? What the heck is that move?" Dawn asked as she watched Pikachu and Pidgeot start to gain altitude again.

"Never heard of it before myself," Drew told her. "I have to admit though that Ketchum isn't too bad, and while I don't enjoy admitting it he's a brilliant tactician with how well his two Pokémon are working together. It's almost like watching a Pokémon with one mind but two bodies fighting. But his sense of contest battles is horrid."

"I didn't catch all of that, but I think I know what you were saying. And Ash is a good battler no matter what you say; points don't matter if you're able to knock out your opponent's Pokémon before they run out."

"Yeah but it's still barbaric to only try for that way. And why are you wearing those things in your ears?"

"These things?" Dawn asked pointing at the ear plugs. "They're ear plugs of course."

"No, not 'what are they', 'why are you' wearing them!" He yelled at her, trying to get through.

"Sheesh, you don't need to yell. But to answer why, I don't know. Ash just gave them to us before the fight started and told us to use them. He never said why. Do you have any idea May? May?"

Not even paying attention to the two that were talking, May and Eevee had their eyes glued to Pidgeot as he continued to rise into the air. He was getting harder and harder to see as they didn't stop climbing. Eevee had been clawing at May's lap for most of the fight whenever Pikachu was in free fall, even when it was obvious that Pidgeot was going to catch him. She just couldn't control her fear of watching him get hurt. It was only proven with that last attack Fearow did on him, when she heard him cry out in pain even May winced as she felt the Normal-Type's claws dig into her lap in reflex. She only relaxed her grip once he was back in the air with Pidgeot. At least her trainer knew exactly why she was acting like that and never even said anything against the action.

"Mach Meteor," May repeated in her head while trying to ignore the pin sized holes that were now in the skin of her thighs. "I remember Thunder Armor now at least; Ash used it against Tate and Liza back in Hoenn for his Mind Badge. But what is this Mach Meteor? Meteor…" May's eyes went wide as she realized exactly what that part of it meant. Thinking back to when they caught Ash's private training session, she remembered seeing a giant thunderbolt streaking down from the sky. "That was no Thunder attack."

"Eevee, trust me, you don't want to watch this."

Hastily covering up her Pokémon's eyes with her hand, May could only hope that her assumption was wrong. Struggling against her trainer's hand to see, May made sure to always keep her in the dark. She didn't even want to imagine what would happen if the Normal-Type saw what she thought would happen.

"May? What's wrong?" Dawn asked.

"Dawn, Drew, I think we're about to see how crazy Ash can really get when it comes to battles."

Pikachu looked down to see the ground far below him. He could no longer make out Pikapi and even the stadium was starting to get tiny. Gulping hard, he was as nervous as he had ever been. Sure they had tested this move out a number of times without any noticeable mistake, six of which were from this height, but the fact remained that if the timing was off by even a second it could be fatal. He had to completely rely on Pidgeot, which of course he did, but it still gave him the chills being at this height. At least it was taking his mind off of the countless small cuts that he now had across his body. While they weren't major every time he moved he could feel nearly every one of them.

"Pikachu," he told the bird he was riding when they approached their target height.

"Pidgeot."

"Pika."

Letting go of Pidgeot's feathers, the electric mouse watched as the Flying-Type banked away and continued to gain a little more speed before angling himself to what he needed for his portion of the combo attack.

Pikachu was now in midair, still flying upwards from the force of Pidgeot. But that was slowly changing as that force ran out and gravity started to take over. He could feel it inside of himself as his body stopped pulling down from the positive g-forces. It wasn't long before everything seemed to stop for a moment as he hit zero-g, the feeling of complete weightlessness. For a split-second he hovered there, enjoying the sights of being this high in the air. That all ended as gravity took control again, and he entered into the feeling of negative-g forces, slowly picking up speed. It wasn't long before he was falling as fast as his body would take him, it was then that he activated his first attack. Surrounding himself in the familiar aura of Volt Tackle, the decreased air resistance created by the electricity added to that of the Thunder Armor and caused him to shoot down to Earth like a rocket. Carefully steering by using his tail as a rudder he aimed for his target and continued falling the vast distance down to the ground.

"Okay, what's happening up there?"

Aaron, along with the entire stadium, had their eyes glued to the sky where Ash's Pokémon had ascended to. Fearow had at least returned to the sky while Marowak was back to his feet. They were his two most persistent Pokémon so the coordinator knew it would take a lot to bring them down, even if he had more than he bargained for with his current opponent.

After a few moments, Aaron caught sight of a yellow streak starting to fall down towards them. Although he couldn't completely make it out, it didn't take long for the coordinator to figure out what it was.

"He couldn't," he said with an extremely nervous smile coming to his face. "He wouldn't. It's just a trick. A farce. Pidgeot will catch him before he gets too far."

But the streak continued to come closer, and the size seemed to be increasing as it got closer too.

"He couldn't, where is that bird!" Scanning the air, it didn't take long to locate Pidgeot.

After Pikachu let go of him, Pidgeot had done a large aerial loop, putting him exactly in the line he needed. While Pikachu was just starting to fall, Pidgeot once gain entered into a power dive. Pulling his wings and talons back against his body as much as he physically could, he tried to gain as much speed as possible, pulling away from even the plummeting Pikachu.

Besides his angles, there was only one thing on the Flying-Type's mind, speed. He needed more, a lot more.

Two times, three times, four times, five times, using his keen eyes Pidgeot had to keep an accurate idea of his relative speed compared to Pikachu. This entire maneuver relied on his ability to be exactly precise at where he needed to be and when he needed to be there.

He was already hitting the barrier that kept most Pokémon from going any faster. His muscles were aching as they tried to keep his entire body from shuddering from the force that was ramming up against him and the heat created by the friction created by the air was becoming intense, especially along the leading edge of his wings. Before his reunion with Ash, he barely had a need to go this fast. To help him transition through the barrier, Ash had them train to use Thunder Armor to not only cause a decrease in wind resistance for extra speed but also for the defensive boost for the transition itself.

Struggling against the air, Pidgeot knew from experience that it would get much easier after he finally broke through that wall. All he needed was one word from his trainer.

Ash watched as Pidgeot rocketed back down to the ground ahead of Pikachu.

Even if they had absolutely no mistakes in the nearly hundred times they tried this, from many different heights, he always got butterflies in his stomach watching it.

Seeing the point he needed, Ash knew it was time to hit the real portion of the attack.

"Now Pidgeot!" He screamed at the top of his lungs to make sure the bird heard him over the roaring winds he was experiencing. "Accelerate!"

Leveling off just above the stadium, the Bird Pokémon came into view just long enough for every spectator to see it and then it was gone again.

As his entire body became nothing but a combination of brown and gold blurs to even the best eyes, an ear splitting crack, which sounded eerily similar to lightning, split out from the air around him, followed almost instantaneously by the deep resonating boom of a powerful blast of air pressure radiating out from that same point.

Due to their proximity to the blast both Ash and Aaron were knocked off their feet as it shoved every spectator right into the backs of their seats. If it wasn't for the ringing in everyone's ears from the crack, the sound of glass shattering across the stadium was the only other signal of the wave's passing.

To Fearow, who was right next to where the center of the anomaly occurred, it was too much in his exhausted state. He didn't even have time to feel the disorientation of the powerful sound wave before the blast of air hit him head on without him even knowing what was happening and knocked him out instantly. Marowak, likewise, was sent flying along the ground, his ears rigging and balance completely off kilter.

Aaron was having a hard time figuring what just happened as he got to his feet. Pidgeot was nowhere in sight. The only thing he could see was a cloud of water vapor expanding over the middle of the airspace above the stadium. Dazed by the blast, it took him several seconds before realizing that it wasn't over.

"Pikachu, Volt Tail!"

With everyone's attention on Pidgeot, they had forgotten Pikachu. And at the speed he was going by the time he got close to the stadium to clearly see him, he had already hit ground before anyone knew it.

At virtually the exact moment that Pikachu's attack hit the disoriented Marowak and sent a massive cloud of dust into the air, another blast of air shot past the trainers creating an odd phenomenon as a pocket of air appeared in between the ground and the rising dust.

Finally completely coming to his senses, Aaron's eyes scoured over the battlefield.

"Fearow! Marowak!"

Quickly locating them, he knew it was over. Marowak was unmoving in the middle of the field and Fearow was off to the side, the same spot he fell from when the blast wave initially hit.

Looking over at Ash, his opponent seemed as calm as ever even though neither of his Pokémon were anywhere within sight.

Just then a loud call was heard above them. Shooting back down, at a speed far slower than what he was just at, Pidgeot gave one large beat of his wings and landed gracefully behind Ash. He was a mess, there were blackened feathers all across his body, mainly on the leading edges of his wings, but he still looked proud and regal with his crest remaining completely unmarred as he stood behind his trainer. And perched on his shoulder was none other than Pikachu looking just as proud about the results.

Holding his right hand into the air, Ash's Pidgeot happily brought his head down for the boy to give him a congratulatory scratch to his neck.

"You guys did perfect," he told them with a large smile on his face. "And I expected nothing less."

Jumping off of Pidgeot's shoulder and onto Ash's, Pikachu didn't look as bad as Pidgeot, but he wasn't in 100% condition either.

"Pipikachu!" He called out while holding out his hand and fingers in a "V" shape as he brought back his old victory pose.

Seconds after, the entire stadium's silence was shattered as the roars of applause rang out.

Okay first of all, if you think you know at least part of what that last move was based on and have too many questions of the physics involved, I think that it's best not to think too deeply into it. Both physics and biology weep when it comes to the rules of Pokémon. Just as a few examples (which are taken right from the Pokédex): at 18,000° F Magcargo's body is 1.8 times the temperature of the surface of the sun, in the time it takes you to blink an eye one of Machamp's arms can hit a total of 37 times, and this last one is probably something that Ash is very glad that the anime didn't completely consider, Charizard spits fire hot enough to melt boulders. Well stone becomes magma at about 1300-2400° F (~700-1300° C), and at that temperature not only would the boulders melt but the human body would begin to liquefy as well, of course that's assuming that you wouldn't just burn up in the process. And as the author of who summarized this and more stated: "Conclusion: Pokémon are really freaking hax."

Hope you enjoyed the chapter. Next one will be up as usual.